Generally, consumer product packages such as cartons or bottles are shipped from the manufacturer to the retailer in a shipping case. In some situations the shipping case is specially designed so that a portion may be readily removed to facilitate display of the product in the case. Certain shipping cases even permit viewing of the product without removal of a portion of the shipping case.
It is important that a shipping case provide adequate protection to the packages so that the product is not damaged in transit. Particularly important is that the shipping case have adequate compressive strength so that when cases are loaded one on top of another the weight of the upper case is supported by the lower case without any damage to the packages in the cases.
A further problem attendant to the design of modern shipping cases is the desire for reduction of resource used in the fabrication of the case. Not only does this reduce the cost of the case, but it minimizes the amount of waste material which must be disposed of when the mission of the case has been fulfilled. However, it is not an easy task to meet the dual goals of providing significant source reduction and at the same time affording adequate protection to the packages housed within the case.
Shrinkwrapped packaging is well known. However, it has been found that when shrink wrapped packaging is employed for cartons containing volatile components such as perfumes, staining and/or printing ink discoloration of the cartons can occur. Numerous patents discuss shrink wrapping.
Harris, U.S. Pat. No. 4,873,814 discloses a shrinkwrap package including vent openings of a size and number to permit free air flow through the package and allow the escape of gas. The container is for produce and other comestibles and is said to lengthen the life of such products by permitting a free flow of air through the package, thereby discouraging the formation of mildew and preventing the buildup of moisture which causes spoilage. The patent explains that the disadvantage of effectively encasing produce such as fruit and the like in a sealed container of air is that it results in a shortened shelf life. Fruit, for example, generates ethylene which promotes accelerated ripening. Fruit, candies, cheeses, liqueurs and the like are mentioned.
Harris, U.S. Pat. No. 4,815,603 issued from the parent application to the application which issued as U.S. Pat. No. 4,873,814 mentioned above.
Rumsey, U.S. Pat. No. 3,026,656 is directed to an improved commercial package wrapped in sheet material and an improved method and apparatus for making the same wherein the air or a substantial proportion thereof is removed in an improved and effective manner and the package is thereupon effectively sealed so that air will not reenter the package at the point of extraction. The patent mentions that food products are frequently packaged in transparent sheet material and it is has been found that by removing the air or a large portion thereof from the package the product will be protected and preserved for a relatively longer period of time. The Rumsey patent indicates that packages embodying the invention may be used for many different types of products, but particularly products such as food products which are protected and preserved for longer periods of time when the air or at least a portion of the air is removed from the package. Thus the invention, it is said, may be used for the packaging of meat products of various types, dairy products such as cheese or butter and the like.
Anderson, U.S. Pat. No. 3,804,235 is directed to a package having a sheet of heat shrinkable material wrapped therearound wherein the sheet of heat shrinkable material has at least one opening. An object is a pilfer-proof package having holes therein which have ribbed reinforcements that are tightly held against and contiguous to the packages to prevent air circulation. Packaging of, e.g., cigarettes is mentioned.
Cutara, U.S. Pat. No. 4,289,237 is directed to a fire wood package having a film of plastic material secured around the bundle of firewood. Both ends of the bundle are exposed and the plastic material is perforated to permit air to circulate into and through the bundle by way of the perforations and open ends of the bundles.
Fales, U.S. Pat. No. 4,306,653 is directed to a packaging container for protection of fragile articles. Lamps, objects d'art, motors and furniture are mentioned. A heat shrinkable inner packing may be used. In FIG. 1, shrink bag 60 appears to include holes.
Oberle, U.S. Pat. No. 5,002,782 discloses heat shrinkable thermoplastic bags including slits cut by a knife blade. The slits are said to reduce the splitting when a product, such as a meat product, is cooked within the bag. The baking or roasting of turkey breast, ham or the like is mentioned.
Doyle, U.S. Pat. No. 5,171,593 is directed to a method of wrapping a tray of produce or other articles requiring ventilation. The sheet includes a perforated portion which is bounded by non-perforated lateral edge portions. Plastic film packaging of produce such as blueberries and raspberries is mentioned.
Harris, U.S. Pat. No. 4,941,572 is directed to a package for shipping and storing articles such as cut flower arrangements. Use of the package of the Harris invention for shipping potted plants is also mentioned. A plastic film cover is employed which is formed from shrinkwrapped plastic and includes an upper vented portion and a lower portion wrapped around the container in shrinkwrap relation.
A number of different types of cases and other shipping packages are known in the literature.
Richardson, U.S. Pat. No. 3,918,584 is directed to a shipping case for fragile product-filled cartons made from a rectangular sleeve of corrugated fiberboard having open ends and having the corrugation running between the open ends. A plurality of cartons are stacked in rectangular configuration in the sleeve and occupy the entire volume of the sleeve with exposed carton faces forming a substantial planer surface at both ends of the sleeve. Heat shrinkable transparent film in the form of a band is disposed around the open ends of the fiberboard sleeve and at least two opposite walls of the sleeve and is shrunk. The sleeve and carton are contained together as an integral unit providing a shipping case without end flaps.
In Richardson, the vertical compressive or end strength is said to be unexpectedly superior to that of conventional filled cases, thereby enabling, if desired, the use of lower weight packing materials with attendant cost savings. Moreover, the lack of flaps in the Richardson construction is said to minimize fatigue or damage since it is said virtually to be impossible to maintain the case in a square configuration as the flaps are being glued closed. The visibility of the cartons through the transparent overwrap is said to make less likely damaging or cutting of the cartons when the case is open.
Lehms, U.S. Pat. No. 4,828,110 is directed to a unitized package of a plurality of generally cylindrical containers such as cans or bottles. The unitized package comprises several independent integral container cells of equal size held together to one another by a resilient film ribbon under tension. The film ribbon may be oriented polypropylene. Optionally, each container cell may be circumscribed by a band, such as plastic strips 28, 30 and 32. The resilient film ribbon of Lehms is in contact with the containers about the periphery of the package along a major portion, i.e. more than 50% of the cylindrical body portion length dimension.
Ryan et al., U.S. Pat. No. 3,878,943 is directed to a rectangular shipping package comprising a carton having at least five sides enclosed within a shrunken packaging film.
Oglesbee, U.S. Pat. No. 3,693,788 is directed to a package designed to pack and distribute articles such as glass tumblers, having an inner paperboard sleeve and an outer envelope such as a shrink film envelope. The sleeve has one or more flexible curved article gripping panels formed by the use of curved scorelines.
Heaney, U.S. Pat. No. 3,990,576 is directed to an arrangement for packaging glass doors and the like for shipment and handling. The bundle of glass doors is wrapped in a packing strip, which is cinched to a pallet and covered with a transparent film, preferably by heat shrinking a clear plastic envelope therearound.
Brown, U.S. Pat. No. RE.27,212 is directed to package constructions having open ended receptacle means filled with product containers arranged in rows and disposed in a heat shrunk film-like member holding the receptacle means and product containers tightly together. A plurality of receptacle means can be disposed in stacked relation within the heat shrunk tubular film-like member.
Coons, U.S. Pat. No. 3,416,288 is directed to a method of shrink packaging utilizing a self-erecting pallet.
Begnaud et al., U.S. Pat. No. 3,589,510 is directed to a package comprising a tray having four vertical sides and a bottom, contents in the tray and a shroud extending over the contents.
Clarkson, U.S. Pat. No. 4,730,730 is directed to a tray for supporting a plurality of bottles and a band around the perimeter of the bottles. A shrink wrap is placed around the bottles, band and tray.
Ganz, U.S. Pat. No. 3,756,397 discloses a single wrap of a single sheet of continuous shrinkable plastic material to constitute virtually the entire package for a cluster of plural, like containers such as bottles. The sheet circumferentially envelopes the cluster with the ends of the sheet overlapping at the alignment of one of the longitudinal ends of the clustered containers.
Shelton, U.S. Pat. No. 4,177,895 is directed a package comprising a multi-cell container prepared from a partially corrugated first material having peaks and flutes, a polymeric film encompassing the outermost peripheral surface of said container and a cover for said container and which cover is prepared from at least a partially corrugated second material having peaks and flutes.